Nobody's Home
by LovezFanFic
Summary: After 4 long years, Quinn Fabray returns to Lima, Ohio. Nicole Fabray sees her sister for the first time in what felt like forever. Santana Lopez, Noah Puckerman, and Brittany Pierce see their once best friend who they all thought was dead. And Rachel Berry sees the girl who's heart she broke Senior year at her complete worst.
1. They Never Tell You

_**Chapter 1: They Never Tell You**_

_ Personal affection is a luxury you can have only after all your enemies are eliminated._

_Until then, everyone you love is hostage,_

_sapping your courage and corrupting your judgment. _

* * *

_In an hour the world will turn dark and still. Anyone who's ever camped in the remote wilderness knows what I'm talking about. There are no streetlights in the woods. No lamps, storefronts, or glowing laptop screens. These things are a comfort, even in a town as small as Lima, but I won't have any of them once the sun goes down._

_You might say, 'Yeah, but there are stars. Isn't that the same as a billion flashlights? And then there's the moon...' True, on a clear night with a full moon it's not as dark in the woods, but that's not the kind of night I'm about to suffer. I can already hear the thunder claps ten miles or so off in the distance. A storm is coming and clouds are gathering overhead. There will be no stars or moon tonight._

_I feel paranoid and unprotected so far away from home. The feeling is like I'm being followed by an army of zombies dead set on tracking me down. The really bad thing about camping in the deep of the woods? Unless you count a sleeping bag, there's no place to hide once the sun goes down. My fears can come at me from any direction they want._

_Looking up into the sky, I sense what's coming. By midnight it's going to start raining. In fact, from the smell of the air, I'd guess it's going to hail golf balls, the kind that will shred a pup tent and leave me trembling in my sleeping bag. I have no idea why Sergeant Kane set up base out here. Then again, no one ever knew what crazy things he'd do._

_My friend, Mandy, once told me that I was his favorite but to not let it get to my head because my ego didn't need any boosting. She didn't have anything to worry about, because I don't have space in my head to dwell on how amazing I am. I'm preoccupied with more important things, like how I'm going to stay alive from one day to the next._

_There are times when people forget the courage they need to keep fighting; and survive. But I think as long as we have something to believe in; to keep close in our hearts, courage will never truly leave us. We only have to reach deep in our hearts to find it. But I lost that opportunity 4 years ago..._

_I was lonely. I felt it deep and permanently, that this state of being on my own might never disappear. But I welcomed the loneliness, which had everything to do with being anonymous. It's never loneliness that nibbles away at a person's insides, but not having room inside themselves to be comfortably alone._

_It's so stupid because all I wanted was space and now that I have it, there's this part of me that's so achingly lonely I could die._

_When you shut people out of your life, they will eventually quit trying to be a part of it. So that's what I did. I let go. Letting go doesn't mean that you don't care about someone anymore. It's just realizing that the only person you really have control over is yourself._

_If people refuse to look at me in a new light and they can only see me for what I was, only see me for the mistakes I've made, if they don't realize that I am not my mistakes, then they have to go._

_Having someone wonder where you are when you don't come home at night is a very old human need. I haven't seen nor spoken to my family since the day I left Lima, Ohio four years ago. When I use the term family, I only speak of 4 people; 3 of which are in no relation to me whatsoever._

_Blood makes you related, but loyalty makes you family. That was my motto. Nicole Fabray, Santana Lopez, Noah Puckerman, and Brittany Pierce were the only real family I had left – if I could still even call 'em that._

_When I was just a Sophomore in high school, I had gotten pregnant with Puck's baby. It was all an accident, I hadn't done it on purpose. And I most certainly wouldn't have done it if I would have known the repercussions I'd face later on down the line. Weeks went by after I had found out and I still hadn't told my parents – although I knew I'd have to tell them soon because my stomach was only going to stay small for so long._

_My family was a conservative, overly religious, Christian one. So the night I decided to tell them, I knew the outcome was gonna be bad. Extremely bad. I was right._

_My father slapped me across the face the moment the word pregnant fell from my mouth. I flinched, but I wasn't surprised. I had been used to it by that time. He then proceeded to tell me how I was disgusting and that I disgraced the Fabray name and that he wanted nothing to do with some scum of the Earth as such as myself._

_It hurt. It really hurt to hear those words come from my own father's lips. But what hurt even more was watching my mother sit rigidly in her chair, doing nothing to stop the spew of insults that were hurled my way. That hurt so much more._

_They disowned me and kicked me out of the house all in the same night without even as much as a second look – leaving their youngest daughter pregnant and homeless. It wasn't until Puck saw me sleeping on a bench one night that he made a promise to keep me safe and hurt whoever got in his way. That next morning Judy called the cops because someone had vandalized the house and stolen all of her daughter's clothing. They never found out who did it. (**Insert smirk here**)._

_After I had my beautiful baby girl, who Puck had named Beth, we reluctantly gave her up for adoption. We were far too young to care for a baby on our own. And even if we did keep her, we wouldn't have had the proper income to feed and clothe her. She was better off with Shelby anyway, that way we still had the option to see her whenever we wanted._

_Following Beth's birth, I decided to move in with my older sister, Nicole, until I left for college. She was nothing like my parents and for that, I was completely and utterly grateful. She welcomed my flaws and embraced the mistakes that I had made, that we had made. Over the course of the two years of living with her, I had been through far much more than **normal** teens my age. The only common ground I was sure we shared was heartbreak. The heartbreak I never thought I'd receive from the girl I bullied for 2 and a half years._

_Turns out, things don't always go as planned. I signed up to join the military and got some paperwork to fill out a few weeks before graduation. It was then decided that I wouldn't attend the ceremony and instead, my diploma would be mailed to my current place of living, which was my sister's house._

_I told Nicole two nights before the Glee Club went to Nationals that I would be shipped to the Recruit Training Depot in Parris Island, South Carolina to start my basic training the next morning. We yelled and screamed at each other until our voices were raw and our throats were dry. I held her that night as she cried herself to sleep in my arms._

_The morning of my departure, I left four envelopes on the kitchen table. One addressed to Nicole, one addressed to Santana, one addressed to Puck, and one addressed to Brittany. I was too much of a coward to wake her up and inform her of my leaving properly. Because they never tell you goodbyes are like daggers to the soul in the military._

_I'm taken away from my thoughts as I hear a scream in the distance. I grab the rifle beside me and head out of the tent, gun aimed and ready to shoot. Sergeant Kane exits his tent but no one seems to notice as they are far too busy looking into the darkened woods that seemed to go on forever._

_"Sergeant Kane, where is Private Palmer?" I ask, my hand tightening around my gun so hard that my knuckles were colored a pale white, paler than usual. He turns his head toward me and glares before squaring his shoulders._

_"Now is not the time for questions, Corporal Fabray." he snarls at me eerily. Something was off about him. I didn't know what exactly, but it was something._

_I had no time to think about it either because as soon as I heard the second scream – I made a dash for the woods._

**A/N: **In my story Sam's family isn't poor – Rory never existed, neither did Sugar – Quinn never dated Sam – Puck never slept with Shelby – Quinn never lied about who Beth's father was – Brittany isn't as unique as she is in the show, she's smarter than people think.


	2. Hiding Behind Evil

_**Chapter 2: Hiding Behind Evil**_

_Her feelings she hides. Her dreams she can't find. She's losing her mind.  
She's fallen behind. She can't find her place. She's losing her faith.  
She's fallen from grace. She's all over the place_

* * *

_**2 Months Later**_

"Attention!" I command and watch as the recruits run from their bunkers and get into position.

"Now listen to me you benighted little fuckers. We're going to teach you soldiering. The world's noblest profession. When we're done with you, you'll be able to slaughter your enemies like civilized men and women." I pause and glare in the direction of every recruit. "Marines are trained to be the toughest warriors our country has to offer. As a reflection of our exceptional capabilities, you recruits must undergo training that pushes you to your limit and beyond. While any citizen, man or woman, can enlist for service in the Marine Corps and emerge as a Marine, only the most determined ever do so."

"I am Drill Sergeant Fabray and I will be your DS for the remainder of your thirteen weeks here in Basic Training." As I continue to explain the guidelines and rules, I hear a chuckle to my far right. I look and see a young man who seems to be about 17 or 18. He's a puny little thing, barely has any meat on his bones. He had an aura of arrogance surrounding him and I just knew that I'd be having problems with him.

"Recruit, why don't you get down and do some push-ups."

The boy shoots me a look before he drops down and proceeds to do two push-ups. "Permission to recover, Drill Sergeant!"

I narrow my eyes and turn to face him. He can't be serious. "What the fuck?"

"You said do _'some' _push-ups, Drill Sergeant!" He tilts his head downward and I can see a smirk grace his features as he lets out another low chuckle. How dare he try and disrespect me? I can feel the anger sprouting within me, fluttering about like a flock of mad birds against my ribcage. I _could_ wait for the feeling to subside, but opportunity's don't knock twice.

_I needed this._

"You smug little shit. You are going to stay down there and push until your feeble fuckin' arms shove the Earth off its axis and send us spiraling into the fucking sun, killing us all!" I shout with a stern look and my hands placed upon my hips. I remind myself of _him _in that moment and it makes me even _more_ angry. "I will shove this pen up your goddamn dick-hole if you don't finish those push-ups, boy! "

I finish telling the group what we'd be doing with them for their first few days and about the Initial Strength Test they'd be taking in a hour or two. It would be a challenge for some, but only the ones who didn't prepare themselves for boot-camp. Our opportunities to give of ourselves are indeed limitless, but they are also perishable. There are hearts to gladden. There are kind words to say. There are gifts to be given. There are deeds to be done. And there are souls to be saved.

I walk over to the struggling boy – whose last name I found out was Taylor – and I place my boot on his shoulder, effectively stopping him of his previous movements. "Why the fuck are you lookin' at me, do I owe you money?" I ask once I catch him glaring up at me.

"No sir! I mean ma'am, no ma'am!" he corrects himself. I scrunch up my nose in response.

"Your mother's a sir! And it's Drill Sergeant to you goddammit!" He huffs but he continues to do his reps. These kids can't be shown any mercy. Especially not from me. It was their decision to join the Corps. They'd have to _earn _the title of a Marine just like everyone else did. If you want to be a real Marine, you have to be tough. Tougher than tough – you have to be the_ toughest_.

"What the hell's the matter with you, Taylor? You're one simple son of a bitch. Get the hell up and get back in formation!" He scurries up to his feet and steps back into place. I have to look at my boots to hide the grin on my face.

"Forward, March!"

* * *

"It's not that goddamned difficult, Big Foot. It's not like I asked you to eat a bushel of apples and shit a fruit salad!" I yell at an overly-grown boy who looks kinda clumsy and awkward. He reminds me of Finn in a way. With that boyish kind of charm and that stupid half grin.

"Did you just smile at me, Recruit? Smilin' leads to likin', likin' leads to lovin' and lovin' leads to fuckin'. Do you want to fuck me, Recruit?!"

He looks at me quizzically and then proceeds to speak. "Is that a trick question, Drill Sergeant?" he shouts just as loudly. He was incredibly stupid. I couldn't help but smile.

"Stop fucking breathing so hard, you're stealing air from the rest of society." I tell him as I pace myself with the rest of the group, knowing damn well I could've been done by now. Once we reach the one and a half mile mark, I walk over to the sidelines and observe the recruits with Drill Sergeant Perez.

Believe it or not, DS Perez was actually _my_ instructor when I first came in for basic. He was a short-tempered Mexican with the patience of a 60 year old man still waiting. He was like the big brother I never wanted. Always there and tough when he needed to be.

"You're not takin' it easy on Taylor, are you?" He asks me. I groan, he knew exactly how to get under my skin. I haven't even spoken to the young man in question since we'd been out here.

I shift my weight onto my right foot. "He doesn't know his ass from a hole in the ground. The punk deserves everything he gets."

DS Perez laughs as he places a hand on my shoulder and squeezes ever so slightly. "Care to join me for a drink tonight?"

I raise my eyebrow and smirk. "You should know me by now, Alex." He grins as I look over to the field and sigh. "You climb obstacles like old people fucking!"

* * *

During my first two years in the military, I had already been involved in 3 ambushes. They attacked when you were most vulnerable, sneaking up on you like a thief in the night and taking what was most precious to you. I remember when the first ambush happened and all I wanted to do was cry. I wanted to go home, eat ice cream, and cuddle up to my sister on the couch. But I couldn't do that.

I joined the Marines to prove _her_ wrong. To show her that I wouldn't end up a failure and that I'd grow up to be nothing like Russell Fabray.

I joined the Marines to prove _myself _wrong.

"Whatcha thinkin' 'bout, Blondie?" Alex asks me as he slides a shot toward my outstretched hand.

Drinking is an emotional thing. It joggles you out the standardism of everyday life, out of everything being the same. It yanks you out of your body and your mind and throws you against the wall. I have the feeling that drinking is a form of suicide where you're allowed to return to life and begin all over the next day. It's like killing yourself, and then you're reborn. I guess I've lived about 101 lives now.

"I want to go home." The word sounded foreign to me as it left my mouth, but I couldn't fight the truth any longer. I did want to go home. Desperately so.

Alex looks at my with a sympathetic smile but I turn away because the pity in his eyes is too much to handle. I didn't need anyone's pity. Especially not his. "You have 13 more weeks until you go on vacation. I'm sure you can wait that long, Lucy Q." I smile because he's the only one I let call me that. It sounded weird when the others tried to imitate him. I only ever liked it when he said it.

"I know." I sigh and let my head land on the bar counter with a soft thud. The music in the background overpowered the sound but I could still feel the vibration. Alex scoots his stool over and throws his arm around my back. To be completely honest, I was scared to go back home.

I don't know how my parents would react. I doubt that they would even care to begin with. Nicole would probably be pissed and happy at the same time. I knew she knew I wasn't dead though. Just call it a _sister's intuition_. I don't even want to think about what Santana might do if she ever saw me again. She'd probably try and kick my ass. Even though I'm skilled enough to take her down without a second thought, I'm pretty sure I'd let her do it.

I'm an ass. I deserve it.

Brittany would be over-joyed. I smile to myself just thinking about the bubbly blonde. God, I missed her. Then there was Puck. Puck, Puck, Puck. I'm positive that he'd be extremely pissed. He was overprotective of me, like a baby daddy should be. I chuckle and Alex leans down to catch my eye with a puzzled look. I just grin and shake my head.

I missed hearing Puck's voice.

"Give me another shot, Perez."

* * *

_Rain pounded against my helmet as I jumped and ran through the waist-high grass with my rifle raised and Andrew trailing along me. I could hear the river, but I couldn't see it. Funny how something I loved so much during the day could turn so deadly at night. Like a black sludge drifting past, waiting to pull me under. _

_My movement stopped when I heard distinct voices of men not even 10 feet away. Andrew stopped and covered me from behind as I sat on my haunches and hid myself behind a large tree. I couldn't hear much of the conversation, but I heard enough to realize that the men weren't speaking English. They were Pakistani. _

_I slowly peeked my head out from behind the tree and moved a couple of grass blades from in front of my face. Just enough to see Private Palmer on her knees, arms tied behind her back and her mouth now taped shut. I knew something bad was gonna happen when Sergeant Kane brought us out here. We weren't safe anywhere. Not if they were already this close to our base._

"_Andrew," I whispered to the sandy-haired boy behind me. I didn't care less about not using his rank, it was lives at stake. He glanced at me and I motioned with my hand for him to take a look. His eyes widened at the scene and he looked at me for more orders. "Make a distraction." was all I told him before silently rolling behind the tree to the right of me. _

_He shot his gun in the air multiple times as he ran through the woods making helicopter noises. If I wasn't in the situation that I was in, I probably would've laughed. But being the professional that I am, I didn't. "__اسے پاگل ہو جاؤ__" one of the men said. I didn't know what the hell that meant but I figured it out once I saw one of 'em chase after Andrew with a machete. I shook my head. Never bring a knife to a gun fight. _

_I heard a single pop in the distance and I willed myself to stay together. I knew killing was in our job description, but that didn't mean I had to like it. I rushed to my feet and ran out of cover, shooting the last guy left in his chest repeatedly. Casey's eyes weld up with tears and I pulled my knife from my belt and cut the rope. She scrambled to her feet and threw her arms around my neck. I chuckled. She hadn't even taken the tape off of her mouth yet. _

_I heard the sound of sharpening knives and my eyes widened in horror. I took Casey to my previous spot and stopped. My back against the tree, chest heaving, I thought once more of running. Night was already there, and the last thing I wanted was to be lost in the dark with a knife-wielding maniac on our trail. I waited 5 seconds, 10, 15. The sound of the sharpening had stopped. Maybe they hadn't saw us after all._

_I felt something cold glide across my neck and I knew I was done for. _

I spring up from my pillow and dart my eyes around the room rapidly. Nothing had changed except my position. My cover was pushed to the side and my pillow was now on the floor. Right next to a still snoring Alex. My stomach feels uneasy and I can feel the sweat soaking through my t-shirt. I grab the bottle of Whiskey hidden under my bed and prepare myself for an ongoing war.

_Quinn vs. Quinn_

**A/N: **As you can see, Quinn's mind is literally everywhere. And when she said she joined the Marines to prove _her _wrong, she was referring to herself. In the next chapter I'll get into how she was transferred back to South Carolina to help out Alex and the other Instructors with the recruits. And I'll also give you the other half of the flashback and let you get a glimpse into why Quinn is the way she is.

**A/N 2: **The Shadow's Servant & A Thin Line Between Love and Hate will be updated sometime this week. I don't know when, but they'll be up before Sunday. I promise.


End file.
